Alex Richardson Award 10th Anniversary
On Saturday 13 April third-year Management & Spanish student, Alice Bugeja, became the tenth winner of the Alex Richardson Award, receiving the award alongside two runners-up – Charlotte Barlow and Harriet Allan. First awarded in 2010, the award commemorates former student Alex Richardson, who tragically died during his third year studying French & Spanish at the University of St Andrews.
This year marked the tenth anniversary of Alex’s death and, as they do every year, his family and friends gathered in St Andrews to remember Alex in a touching ceremony and to award the prize. Development intern Charlotte Jiggins went along to the ceremony to catch up with this year’s recipients to find out a bit more about their exciting travel plans and what the Alex Richardson Award means to them.
Speaking about the award ceremony and the day itself Alice said: ‘It was just so nice to get to know [the family] and [they] were really welcoming. It just feels like you’re part of something quite special and I really look forward to that again next year, coming back and seeing them and the next winner.’
Alice recently came to the end of her travels, and you can read all about her adventure and see some of her amazing photos on her blog: https://running-for-alex.webnode.com/blog/
‘I’m honoured that I was chosen. It’s such a terrible thing to lead to such a nice gift, not just to one but three people. Getting to meet the whole family was so nice and to know that they’re interested in supporting all of our trips and journeys is so kind and lovely’
‘I didn’t actually know that these kinds of funds were available to students…when it comes to stuff like dissertation projects, you apply to organisations like the Geological Society or big firms. To have something quite local and to have it in St Andrews and it be related to a former St Andrews student is something quite unique and quite special’
‘It is a really exciting prospect to embark on a self-motivated independent research project and for the outcome to hopefully reflect a successful and productive field excursion.’
The Alex Richardson Award is a truly incredible award which not only honours a much-loved former student, but also brings out the best of the St Andrews community. It affords students a unique opportunity for personal development and enables them to explore the Spanish-speaking corners of the world.
If you would like more information on the award and the stories behind it, or are interested in applying next year, see:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8DtLZPtnqo
https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/modlangs/spanishdepartment/prizes/